"
Nevertheless, the bombardment rose to a fiercer pitch of intensity the
next day. The Mexicans seemed to have an unlimited supply of ammunition,
and they rained balls and shells on the Alamo. Many of the shells did
not burst, and the damage done was small. The Texans did not reply from
the shelter of their walls for a long time. At last the Mexicans came
closer, emboldened perhaps by the thought that resistance was crushed,
and then the Texan sharpshooters opened fire with their long-barreled
rifles.
The Texans had two or three rifles apiece, and they poured in a fast and
deadly fire. So many of the Mexicans fell that the remainder retreated
with speed, leaving the fallen behind them. But when the smoke lifted
others came forward under a white flag, and the Texans allowed them to
take away their dead.
The cannonade now became spasmodic. All the Mexican cannon would fire
continuously for a half hour or so, and then would ensue a silence of
perhaps an hour.
In the afternoon Bowie was taken very ill, owing to his great exertions,
and a bed was made for him in the hospital. Ned sat there with him a
while. The gentle mood that had distinguished the Georgian throughout
the siege was even more marked now.
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